SNL writer's sister Christina Downer: Boyfriend Delorean Brandon and Kaylee Markowski arrested for murder

Christina Downer's boyfriend and a second suspect have been arrested on suspicion of her murder nearly a year after she vanished.

Christina Downer, 38, disappeared in Los Angeles in November 2025, setting off a months-long investigation that culminated in two arrests announced by the LAPD's Robbery-Homicide Division on Friday, October 30. Downer is the sister of Jimmy Fowlie, a writer for Saturday Night Live, whose public profile brought additional attention to the case. The two suspects arrested on suspicion of murder have been identified as Delorean Bijon Brandon — Downer's boyfriend — and Kaylee Nicole Markowski. As part of the investigation, authorities searched an Airbnb property in Joshua Tree. The LAPD media release referenced December 18, 2025 in connection with the case, though no further details about what happened to Downer or how investigators connected the two suspects to her death have been publicly released. The case drew sustained media coverage in large part because of Fowlie's connection to Saturday Night Live.

Why it matters

The arrest of a victim's own boyfriend on murder suspicion, nearly a year after her disappearance, closes a chapter of a high-profile missing-persons case that drew national attention. The outcome underscores the dangers victims can face from intimate partners.

What's next

No information on charges, arraignment dates, or further investigative details has been released by the LAPD.

Key facts

Bias & framing notes

All three sources agree on the core facts — two arrests, the victim's identity, and her connection to an SNL writer. The New York Post leaned on the word 'shocking' in its headline while providing the fewest details. The Daily Mail framed the disappearance as 'mysterious,' adding a sensational tone absent from the ABC7 report, which stuck closest to the LAPD's official announcement.

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